Your big bag at home, overflowing with other recyclable and reusable bags, may actually all be unrecyclable, a newly authorized class-action in Quebec alleges. , filed against Dollarama, the Société des alcools du Québec (Quebec’s version of the LCBO), Rona, Metro, McKesson (which owns Rexall), Giant Tiger, Toys “R” Us and Costco, has been authorized by a Quebec Superior Court judge. In the , Sonia Cohen, the class action applicant, alleges that the bags sold at the stores of the defendants all advertise reusable and recyclable bags that cannot be recycled in Quebec, and in Canada more broadly.
Cohen argues that — a practice where companies take part in false or misleading advertising tied to climate change. Think “eco-friendly” straws that aren’t recyclable, fashion labels that don’t live up to their sustainability claims, or food in ‘green’ packaging. Lyla Radmanovich, a spokesperson for Dollarama, said the company “is currently one of a number of defendants to the class action,” adding that the company is contesting the procedure which is before the courts and refused to comment further.
According to a post on the Competition Bureau’s website about greenwashing, the federal agency said, “False, misleading or unsubstantiated environmental claims may raise concerns under the laws enforced by the Competition Bureau: the , the , and the .” have been investigated by the bureau for greenwashing practices in the past. Attached to the applicatio.
